Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Stormwater topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Fauquier officials review MS4 stormwater program and current $13.64 fee
Summary
Staff told the board the county meets Chesapeake Bay TMDL goals largely through land-use conversions and limited credit purchases; the current stormwater management fee on tax bills is $13.64 per parcel and fee revenue is about $365,000, and staff proposed further evaluation of program components and fees.
County stormwater staff described the municipal separate storm sewer (MS4) program responsibilities and the current funding mechanics, saying the program administers plan review, inspections, enforcement and mapping for the urbanized area and must deliver pollutant reductions required by the Chesapeake Bay TMDL.
The presenter explained Fauquier has met its pollutant-reduction obligations largely through land-use conversions on county properties and one constructed wetland at Brumfield Elementary, supplemented by credit purchases when necessary. She told supervisors that the stormwater management fee currently included on the tax bill is $13.64 per parcel and that fee revenue—distinct from permitting fees—generates about $365,000. Staff discussed removing the fee and instead evaluating which program components are required by state regulation and which are funded through permitting or general fund support.
Board members pressed for the total revenue generated by the fee, options for local credit generation (wetlands, stream restoration or public-private partnerships) and the equity of buying credits for a rural county where the MS4 footprint is small. Staff said they exhausted county property options in 2023 and that projects outside the MS4 area require DEQ base-load adjustments, often making in-county credit generation cost-prohibitive.
